The moment when Eliya’s lips almost touched mine.
– Bang! Bang! Bang!
Someone knocked vigorously on the door.
“Eep!”
Eliya startled and jumped up.
I clumsily scrambled to my feet as well.
‘Ugh, wow. That scared me… Ah, my heart hurts…’
We both panted heavily.
Eliya’s face was flushed like she was excited.
…Is my face like that too?
– Bang! Bang! Bang!
The door was knocked on again from downstairs.
“Phew…”
Eliya sighed and swept her hair back.
“I…”
“No. You just got better. Patients need to rest. I’ll go check.”
I hurried out of the room, knocking things over as I went.
The sound of me going down the stairs was harsh.
At this rate, I might break the house.
A voice came from downstairs.
“Who is it?”
“Miss, it’s me. Mei. I’m here for Judah’s regular check-up.”
“…Come in.”
She opened the door roughly and stomped back upstairs.
When Eliya returned, her face was all pouty.
Like a pufferfish.
‘Cute, that’s like a tonic. Hmm. Wait a minute. Mei? The doctor from Eliya’s Mansion?’
Mei and Gale entered right after.
They were the doctors I often saw at Eliya’s Mansion.
Were they the ones who confirmed me before?
“Hey? Judah? Do we remember each other?”
Just like Eliya, they were also misunderstanding a lot.
I quickly summarized what I had told Eliya to clear up the misunderstanding.
Gale slapped my back like old times.
“Then you should’ve said so clearly, you brat!”
“Yikes! I thought I had!”
That old man is still as irritable as ever.
No wonder his hands were rough during every check-up.
“Ugh, tsk… Let’s see your bare chest.”
Every time they came to check, they’d confirm my condition.
I wanted to see my own body too.
‘Since I had regained my sensations, the muscle loss shouldn’t be too bad… I wonder what happened to the soot left on me.’
Until before fighting the Drake, soot was still on my body.
It got smaller as I restored my magical power.
After dying and coming back to life, my eyesight went bad, so I couldn’t tell.
“Okay.”
Mei checked my eye condition and left first.
I took off my shirt to be checked by Gale.
But Eliya kept glancing at my body.
‘…It’s kind of embarrassing when you stare like that.’
My body is covered in minor scars.
While Gale examined me, Eliya’s gaze shifted.
Now she was openly looking at me.
“Hmm, I guess there’s nothing wrong. But you’ve been lying around for days, and you still look so ruggedly built, it’s gross.”
“That’s the result of using my body roughly and diligently…”
“Shut up. Don’t use your body so roughly.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Gale warned me, then greeted Eliya and left.
I hurried to get dressed.
Eliya kept staring, which felt a bit… weird.
I confirmed that all the soot had completely disappeared from my body.
But then…
Eliya suddenly grabbed my hand.
It was a strong, rough grip, as if she was trying to stop me from getting dressed.
“Um, miss…?”
Eliya gazed intensely at my body.
Her eyes were glued to me as if she couldn’t hear her own voice.
I instinctively shrank back and swallowed hard.
‘W-wait, has my role changed here?’
Thinking of the master-servant dynamic, that felt like the right role…
Surprisingly, Eliya quickly let go of my wrist.
I put on my clothes during that moment.
“The soot on your body is gone…?”
“I told you, didn’t I? I think it’s okay to touch now.”
“How…”
The soot was a sign that my body had reached its limit.
However, now that I’ve perfected the trait of [Complete Moon], I have nothing to worry about.
“That’s… just a feeling? I heard the Gigantic Drake you killed was related to the moon, so maybe its death affected you.”
“Really…?”
Eliya nodded slowly, as if she had an inkling.
Then, she crawled onto my bed.
She naturally climbed onto me and cuddled up.
I sat quietly, leaning against the head of the bed, allowing her to nestle into my embrace.
It felt nice, being the right size and warm.
A drowsy warmth seeped into my body.
‘…But why is she so skinny?’
I thought she looked pale, but she felt like nothing but bones.
‘How did I let her get like this…?’
Do I need to feed her first?
Anyway, Eliya said while snuggling against me,
“So, does that mean I can touch you freely now…?”
For some reason, her voice sounded a bit excited.
“W-well… I guess it should be okay…”
Eliya’s little hand fiddled with mine.
It was as if she was checking if the soot would come back.
“Looks like it’s really okay now… Back then, did I really need to go that far with you…?”
She murmured, her voice laced with regret.
“If I knew it would come to this, I would’ve just kept you close…”
That might not be true.
I was able to complete the trait of the Complete Moon because I left Eliya.
It’s an ironic situation.
Feeling upset and guilty, Eliya shed tears and sniffled.
Her eyes and nose turned red from all the crying.
I felt like this shouldn’t happen, but it was kind of cute.
“It’s okay now. You’re okay now.”
“…You idiot. But are you really okay? What if something bad is happening unseen?”
“Umm… I don’t think so.”
Well, if it were something I couldn’t feel, then there’s not much I could do about it.
But I’m sure it’s not.
[Magical Power: 74.0]
My magical power, which had risen to 68, quickly climbed to 74.
Not to mention, nothing was draining from my body; warm energy kept integrating into me.
I was more worried about her.
“Miss. Do you feel any magic leaving your body or something like that?”
“Huh? Right now?”
“Yes. I mean, I feel like I’m absorbing your magic somehow…”
“Hmm?”
Eliya blinked her big eyes.
As if trying to feel the magic, her pupils moved slowly around.
Eventually, she shook her head.
“Not at all. If that were the case, I would have definitely noticed.”
When it comes to magic and magical power, Eliya couldn’t possibly be ignorant.
There’s no reason for her to lie about this either.
“Rather… The magical power flowing from you is too much and too thick compared to before, and I was worried about that. Are you really okay?”
“I swear I’m really fine. If I’m not, I’ll tell you right away.”
“Okay. You must say that.”
She nodded and buried her face deeper into my body.
In a drowsy voice, she murmured,
“This feels good… I really needed this…”
Rubbing her face against me, she resembled a cat acting cute.
I naturally embraced her and savored the warmth.
Then, I carefully said,
“Miss.”
“Hmm?”
“You said earlier that what you said then was a lie. So, what about your true feelings…”
Before I could complete my sentence, Eliya suddenly lifted her head.
With her arms wrapped around my neck, she came closer.
Our eye levels aligned.
She gazed at me directly.
Her gem-like red eyes.
“Do you want to know my true feelings?”
Despite her firm expression, her voice trembled as if she was nervous.
I couldn’t help but feel anxious myself.
I swallowed hard and replied with difficulty.
“…Yes.”
She blinked her large eyes at me.
Without saying anything, she just stared deeply.
Our faces got closer; I barely noticed it happen.
Slowly, our breaths intermingled.
It felt like her long eyelashes would brush against my face.
I unintentionally found my gaze fixed on her lips.
Small and plump, red lips.
They seemed like they would taste like sweet fruit if bitten.
Following my gaze, her eyes shifted from my lips to my own, then back to my eyes.
Thump, thump.
My heart raced.
Against our pressed skins, a strong rhythm echoed within us.
Eliya’s heart thudded for me, while mine thudded for Eliya.
I couldn’t distinguish whose heart was whose.
It felt like we had become one.
As if preparing for an answer in another language,
My eyes slowly closed, and my head tilted at an angle.
Our noses lightly touched.
– Bang! Bang! Bang!!
Someone knocked on the door from downstairs.
‘…Not again?’
Eliya’s eyes turned fierce in an instant.
– Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Miss! Urgent news!”
It wasn’t my name they were calling, but Eliya’s.
The voice was urgent and serious.
“Phew…”
Eliya rested her chin on my shoulder and sighed deeply.
“This is annoying…”
I gently patted her waist as if to soothe her.
“There must be something important going on.”
“You’re the most important to me.”
Her whining was just too cute.
I felt a bit disappointed, but there wasn’t anything I could do.
She had her duties to attend to.
The war wasn’t over yet.
Realizing the reality, Eliya brushed her hair back once and got to her feet.
“I’ll go down.”
I hurriedly got up from my spot.
Although I was a patient, my body had already fully recovered.
I didn’t need to lie down and rest anymore.
As I was gathering my cat doll to leave, I noticed a sword lying next to the bedroom door.
‘This is…’
It was the Moon’s Dusk, the sword I had abandoned.
Had Eliya taken care of it, as it bore quite a bit of wear and tear?
I picked up the sword and went downstairs.
The one who visited Eliya was Dillon.
‘Looks like he had a tough schedule too. His complexion isn’t good.’
He glanced at me and then told Eliya the rest.
It wasn’t a moment to share the joy of reunion.
I greeted Dillon with a nod and sat in the living room.
The atmosphere felt urgent as if we needed to leave quickly.
It seems I should leave a brief note.
The recipients would be Yurideke and Orphe, who helped me settle here.
And also, Leon, Cooper, Brown, and Connor, whom I briefly met and was glad to see.
‘That should be enough. By the way, I haven’t seen Yurideke and Orphe recently… I was lying down, but did they go somewhere?’
As I set down my pen, Eliya approached.
Seemingly hesitant, her lips quivered.
But I spoke first.
“Let’s go together. Can we go right now?”
“…You want to go with me?”
Eliya had harshly chased me away before.
Now, she probably thought it was embarrassing to ask me to go with her.
I said nonchalantly.
“I’m your knight, so I should be with you.”
“…”
Eliya looked up at me with teary eyes.
‘Oh dear, she’s already a crybaby.’
She soon dove into my arms.
Burying her face in my chest, she started silently sobbing.
As I patted her shoulder, Dillon was watching us with a smirk.
I slightly nodded my head in greeting, and he did the same back lightly.
“But…”
Eliya suddenly asked.
For some reason, her voice turned cold and stiff.
“Who are you writing a letter to?”
“To the people who helped me settle here…”
“A woman?”
“…Well, there’s one woman, but she’s married. And they have a very strong bond, yes. I even know who her husband is, you know? He knows me well too?”
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